Lore Movie Review

Lore (Saskia Rosendahl) is a 14 year old girl. Her name is pronounced like Laura. She focuses on herself with little time for her siblings or parents. It is set in 1945 Germany. War is coming to an end and the Russian and American occupations are starting. Her father is a SS officer and her mother is also connected to the party. This means that both her parents are about to be arrested.

Lore is a dark, coming-of-age movie. Americans and her countrymen are forced to fend for themselves as the old government goes down. Lore must bring her four siblings across the country, from their house in the south of Germany to Hamburg where her grandmother’s home is located. The journey is filled with danger and they must survive starvation and illness.

Lore is unhappy at the responsibility but she is unwilling to avoid it. Her sister and brothers don’t understand the seriousness of their situation and this makes Lore angry. They are just kids and this is why they sometimes revert to childish pursuits.

Lore knows what she and her siblings are against. The other Germans are not going to cut them some slack because they’re kids. They are seen as either potential prey or burden. Lore’s only ally is Thomas (Kai Mullen), who ends up joining them in their journey. He is a little bit older than Lore and he stirs emotions in her that she doesn’t understand.

Rosendahl is a beautiful actress and manages to do a lot with a little. She has a look of fear or a scowl in the movie. Her role has an unformed soul and just when she is trying to understand the world, it is turned inside out.

Lore probes the ugly aspects of the German national character without pointing fingers or assigning blame. It looks at people placed in high-stress situations and how they handle the pressure.